Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, February 10) — The Philippines remained in the “middle power” category among Asian countries after placing 16th in an annual international index measuring nations’ comprehensive power.
According to the 2023 Lowy Institute Asia Power Index, the Philippines scored 12.8 over 100 points, placing 16 out of 26 countries – one rank higher than North Korea and one lower than Pakistan. This was only a 0.4 score decrease from the 2021 index.
The annual index measures resources and influence to rank relative power of Asian states. The report ranked the countries on their capacity to impact their external environments.
Data for the 2023 index covers five years of data from 2017 to 2022. The independent agency said it is their most comprehensive evaluation of the power distribution in the region yet.
The index assessed power through 133 indicators in eight thematic measures – military capability and defense networks, economic capability and relationships, diplomatic and cultural influence, resilience and future resources.
“In 2023, the Philippines had its only gains in diplomatic influence (+2.0). It lost the most points in resilience (−2.7). It also lost points in defense networks (−2.0) and economic capability (−0.8),” the index said.
It also states that the country’s strongest measure is in defense networks at 9th place, which reflects “the extent of its bilateral military cooperation with treaty ally the United States.”
The weakest measure, meanwhile, is resilience, ranking 20th, as “a result of internal conflict legacies.”
Outside Asian countries, the United States topped the index as a superpower with 80.7 points. China lagged behind scoring 72.5.
At the bottom of the Asian countries list are Myanmar (7.4), Laos (6.4), Mongolia (5.0), Nepal (4.2), and Papua New Guinea (3.3).
